Sweet

I am 3 months post-op. About 2 weeks post-op I had my first ever gallbladder attack. I went to a GI, had an ultrasound, and they discovered stones. They said it wasn't urgent and I should wait. Well, I waited over 2 months which landed me in the ER with gallbladder pancreatitis. Thankfully, mine was caught early and a simple procedure removed the stones from the ducts and my pancreas healed. The next day I had my gallbladder removed. That was a few days ago. DEFINITELY go see a doctor. The pain is worse than any I have ever felt and being untreated could lead to much more serious issues. Honestly, one of my biggest questions is why they don't do a gallstone screening pre-banding. I think if that were done many of us could avoid this. I'm still in recovery from surgery but I know my life is going to be a lot simpler without the frequent gallbladder pain. Keep us posted and let us know how you are doing!

**Update** My gastro ordered a bunch of tests for me and we are waiting for some results to come back, but I do have gallstones. So, my suspicions were correct. I also went for my first fill yesterday and found out that I already had 2 cc's in there which was a mistake made by my surgeon. She added 1 cc, but then needed to take half out because I was so uncomfortable. I think all these factors caused my discomfort that second week after surgery. Not sure if the gallbladder is coming out yet, it seems like they like to wait until you're dying of pain and need to go to the ER. But at least I know I'm not crazy now :smile: Thanks for everyone's feedback. It armed me with some good info when I went to my doctor. Thanks!

I've been having some bizarre symptoms the past week and think they might be related to my gall bladder... Earlier in the week I threw up my entire dinner after what I believed was a stuck episode and was in pain for the next 30 hours with chest cramping and stomach pain and was uncomfortable drinking even a small sip of Water. One day later I was getting into bed, took a drink of ice water, and immediately felt pains all over my upper abdomen radiating to my back. I took a hot shower which alleviated the pain after about 20 minutes, but left me with residual soreness. I have a family history of gall bladder issues and personal history of what i thought was various gastrointestinal issues (frequent upset stomach, cramping, painful BM's, etc.) What is going on?? Im a band newbie (3.5 weeks post-op) but this doesnt seem like band pain... Any ideas?

**Update** I went for a fill yesterday and the RN discovered that I had 2cc's in my band, which were not supposed to be there. She said that was probably the reason for my discomfort early on. She added 1 cc and I was so uncomfortable that she had to take half out. So, thats my story. I'm feeling good now!

So, Im on week 3 of my post-op diet and I really haven't had any issues with any foods thus far. Last night we ordered chinese food. I ate a few pieces of unbreaded chicken and a little lo-mein and I got stuck on something. I threw up 3 times, slimed, pb'd, and 18 hours later I'm still uncomfortable. I'm having a lot of cramping and burping that wont go away and Im nervous to even drink anything because Im afraid I wont be able to keep it down. I barely slept last night so I'm grumpy too. I'm feeling exhausted and discouraged and even having second thoughts about this whole process. I don't even have a fill yet and I'm this uncomfortable?? Has this happened to anyone else? Is is possible that I've done serious damage to my band? (Also, I have left a message with my surgeons office and I am waiting for them to call me back but just want to hear from fellow bandsters.)

How much hair loss is normal? I find myself forgetting how much hair I was losing pre-surgery and can't figure out if the strands I find on my clothing is normal. My gut is that I'm losing more hair than I typically did, although it is not a lot. I have super thick hair, so Im not so concerned yet, but I've read that even people with thick hair have lost half or more of their hair. I don't want to be one of those people! Im only a month post-op, and dealing with all these changes has been hard. I don't want to deal with hair loss now too :confused: So, at what point should I be concerned that I am losing too much hair? And I am reading about Biotin and Nioxin shampoo and people seem to have varying results. Any others ideas? (I will obviously consult my physician about this as well, just curious to hear from fellow bandsters.)

Elcee, the pain you described is almost exactly what I felt!! I got on the bathroom floor and did the Yoga child's pose and thought I might be in that position all night. Finally I mustered up the energy to get into a hot shower, which really helped with the pain. I made it as hot as I could bare. As I mentioned, I am visiting with family now, which may have turned out to work in my favor. Talking to one of my best friends today, she reminded me that a relative of hers is one of the top Gastroenterologists in the country (Gastroenterologist to the stars apparently...). Even though there is typically at least a several month wait to see him or someone in his practice, he wants to see me before I leave. I can't believe I didn't think to see him myself and its such a relief to know I will be seen by someone not only competent, but recognized in his field. I appreciate everyone's feedback and I will keep everyone posted! Hopefully this thread can help someone else who might be experiencing similar symptoms!

I contacted my surgeon last week when I was in pain and thought my band might have slipped. Their only concern was that I was having trouble drinking liquids, but now that I can, it was attributed to a stuck episode. But now Im trying to do some more detective work and see if there were other causes. I am currently in another state visiting family but have an appointment when I return. Elcee, I don't think there is any harm in getting some feedback about personal experiences from other bandsters. Obviously my first line of defense is my physicians, but I always try to go into my appointments armed with as much information as I can. I assure you, and the world of lapbandtalk, that I am not replacing an internet forum for actual advice and care from a medical professional. That would be ridiculous. I do take the information I get on this website with a grain of salt, every time. But I find that physicians like to poo-poo things until the pain is bad enough. I don't want to experience anything like that again so I want to go in with as much info as I can and get them to test me for whatever is appropriate. My insurance covers everything and worst case scenario, I've ruled things out. So, again, Im really looking for feedback from people who have had similar pain, experiences, or who know about gall bladder issues.

So, initially I was freaking out because I definitely thought my band had slipped. However, after the 30 hours of discomfort, I took protonix and was able to drink easily after that and I've been eating normally ever since. The pain I had later that week was a very different pain and not in vicinity of my port or band, which is why I'm thinking gall bladder... I think that my issue could be two-fold. Heartburn/acid reflux and gall bladder? If my band had slipped, wouldn't I still be uncomfortable and not getting anything down?

So, I think that my stuck episode lead into a heartburn episode. I've never had heartburn so it was a foreign feeling to me. So I think the stuck, followed by heartburn, followed by the residual swelling of being stuck, created the perfect storm. Has anyone ever experiences anything like this? I took Protonix and within hours i was feeling better and keeping down my liquids. So, I think my band is still in place, and Im in the clear, for now I'm still very curious to hear if anyone had an experience like this so any other feedback would be great!

Tinksmom, were you also feeling like you couldnt even drink liquids when you had that feeling? Im trying to figure out if this is just the "swelling" post being stuck, or if I've actually done damage...

So, my surgeon was concerned that I may have had a slip. I'm only 3 weeks out so thats pretty crazy. Needless to say, I've been really stressed about it which hasn't made it any better. Finally, 20 hours later, Im drinking and keeping the liquids down. But I've been miserable all day. Is it normal for a "stuck" episode to last this long and be so debilitating? Or might it be something worse? Anyone have anything like this?

Yes, I'm a little excited about it. No, I'm not mentally ill. But I've been reading all about getting stuck and now I know what it feels like. It wasn't too bad. Lasted about 3 minutes. I got stuck on about 1/3 of a hard boiled egg that I didn't chew well enough. I'm 2 weeks post op and just started soft foods. I haven't been feeling much restriction over the past 5 days so, I'm almost relieved that I got stuck. Shows that I have a little restriction? Does this logic make sense? I'm sure getting stuck can be worse than my stuck episode, but I am sure as hell going to make sure to chew better from now on.

I am one week post op and I'm not really measuring out 4 oz. per hour anymore for liquids. I'm finally feeling a little bit like myself again (energy is coming back!) and I find I am getting very very very thirsty. So I just drink when I am thirsty. Little sips at a time. But its possible the total is more than 4 oz. I am on mushy foods already, and that I am measuring out. I forgot to ask the nurse about that when I was on the phone with her today, but does anyone know about that? I am definitely not eating much but just getting really thirsty... Thoughts?

O.M.G. I am 6 days post-op and I had the worst constipation last night. I think that pain and discomfort was worse then everything else combined. Personally, I have never experienced severe constipation before so this was an alien feeling for me. But I just wanted to be taken out of my misery! I added some Miralax to my Gatorade and I used a suppository and finally got that sucker out Sorry if thats TMI. But even after I got through it, I think my body was in shock and I didn't sleep all night from cramping. Ugh. I just want to feel like myself again!!

Hey everyone! I just came across this post and I am looking for some band buddies!! I was banded on the 10th and so far so good. Aside from mild discomfort I'm feeling ok. I'm excited for these two weeks of liquids and mush to be over so I can start learning how to live with this thing!

I was banded yesterday (the 10th) and so far so good. I have to say, the staff at Hackensack hospital kicks ass. They were incredible. I stayed pretty chilled out before the surgery, and the only time I really thought about it was as the anasthesia was kicking in. (Getting all woozy, I began thinking, "what the hell am I doing??) But anasthesia kicked in, and next thing I know I'm in recovery. The nurses gave me some morphine for pain, but after that I was fine. I had my surgery at 8am, left the hospital at 4:30 because I was walking around and getting down my liquids. Now that Im home, I have some mild discomfort but nothing unmanageable. I didn't take any pain meds today and have been eating jello and powerade. Probably a total of 2 oz today. I gotta say, my brain is hungry, but I know even if I tried my body couldnt tolerate it. For everyone getting banded this month, good luck!

Getting banded June 10th! My doctor doesn't require a pre-op diet, but there is two week post-op liquid diet. I'm so nervous for that!

I am being banded on June 10th (ahhhh!) and I have tentative travel plans scheduled for July 21st. The plans are to travel abroad and spend 10+ days traveling, touring, and perhaps even doing a little hiking. I have not spoken to my surgeon about this yet, but I wanted to find out what people's experiences have been. The flight is about 12-14 hours and its going to be a somewhat active trip. Am I being stupid? Am I going to be miserable on the flight and on the trip? Or is this trip feasible? How do people feel 6 weeks post-op? I need advice!